Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and his wife reportedly paid $18,000 to set up a karaoke system in their residence in the Hamptons, financed by bank accounts that special counsel Robert Mueller alleges Manafort sought to hide from U.S. authorities.
New court filings obtained by Talking Points Memo detail how Manafort’s wife, Kathleen Manafort, used the couple’s bank accounts in Cyprus to fund the $18,000 entertainment system at their New York home.
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According to the court document, Kathleen Manafort wired the money from “multiple” bank accounts, suggesting she knew the scope of her husband’s financial assets stored overseas.
Manafort is accused in federal court in Virginia of amassing a fortune from lobbying for pro-Russia interests in Ukraine prior to the 2016 U.S. presidential election, then hiding that money in Cyprus-based bank accounts.
“Manafort used his hidden overseas wealth to enjoy a lavish lifestyle in the United States, without paying taxes on that income,” a February court filing in his Virginia case alleges.
The former Trump campaign chairman has pleaded not guilty to the charges and remains in jail after being ordered into custody last month for violating the terms of his bail agreement.
A business associate, Richard Gates, pleaded guilty earlier this year and was listed Friday on a court filing of potential witnesses for Manafort’s trial in Virginia, which is set to begin Tuesday.
Manafort also faces charges in federal court in Washington, D.C.